Silo or tank.



' 'No. 653,967. Patented July l7, I900.

E. F. SCHLICHTER.

SILO 0B TANK.

(Application filed Nov. 10, 1899.) (No Model.) 2 ShBetsSheet No. 653,967. Patenfed luly- I7, I900.

E. F. SCHLICHTER.

SILO- 0R TANK. lication filed Nov. 10, 1899 NITED i STATES PATENT OFFICE.

ENOS F. SCHLIOIITER, OF PHILADELPHIA, PENNSYLVANIA.

SILOOR TANK.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 653,967, dated uly 17, 190 0.

Application filed November 10, 1899. Serial No. 736,515. (No model.)

To aZZ whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, Enos F. SCHLIOHTER, a citizen of the United States, residing in the city and county of Philadelphia, in the State of Pennsylvania, have invented anew and useful Improvement in Silos or Tanks, which improvement is fully set forth in the following specification and accompanying drawings.

My invention consists of an improved construction of a silo or tank, and more particularly toa silo or tank having a continuous upright opening or doorway and means for fastening the door-sections therein.

Theinvention further consists of novel details of construction, all as will be hereinafter fullyv setforth, and particularly pointed out in the claims.

Figure 1 represents a side elevation of a silo embodying my invention. Fig. 2 represents a fragmentary side elevation taken on an enlarged scale. .Fig. 3 represents a horizontal section taken on line 50 00, Fig. 2. Fig. 4 represents a vertical section taken on line 3/ Fig. 2. Fig. 5 represents a perspective view of the wedging device for fastening the door-sections.

Similar letters of reference indicate corresponding parts in the figures.

Referring to the drawings, A designates my improved silo or tank provided at one side with the upright doorway conveniently ex The sills or tending from top to bottom. posts B at the sides of the doorway are bound in place both by the hoops C, by which the staves of the silo are bound in position, and also by the cross-bars D, extending between said posts or sills B. Extending between the clined side edges Gr to fit against the interiorly beveledor inclined side edges H of the posts or sills B, suitable packing being interposed, if desired, to make a close joint.

As shown in Fig. 4, the lower edge of each door-section is grooved and its upper end provided with a tongue to make a joint between the upper and lower edges of these sections and to cause them to fit nicely. The other members of the wedging devices referred to are mounted upon the outer faces of the doorsections and coactwith the members carried by the guides E, and thus the door-sections can be firmly held in position against the posts or sills B, as shown in Fig. 3.

In the particular construction illustrated the wedging devices consist of the sliding member J, mounted upon the guide-rod E, which may be a plate with an aperture K at one end to receive the rod E and a bifurcated or fingered outer or free end L. The stationary members of the wedging device are carried by the door-sections and consists of an inclined bar M, having double flanges N, upon which fit the bifurcated or fingered end of the plate J.

The operation is asfollows: The lower part of Fig. 1 and Figs. 2, 3, and 4 show the doorsections in place. In this position the sliding member J of the wedging device has been forced downwardly until it binds upon the double flange N of the inclined bar M and holds the sections F in contact with the posts or sills B, it being noticed that, for convenience each upright guide-bar E carries two of the wedging-plates J. In removing the upper door-sections said sliding member J is raised, and since its bifurcated or fingered end closely embraces the flanges N of the bar M the upper end of the door-section is moved inwardly, and when the sliding member reaches the upper end of the guide rod E it can be disengaged from the flange N and the door-section readily removed. The guiderods E are moved to one side, as shown in Fig. 1, after the door-sections are removed. lVhen inserting and securing the door-sections in place, the groove in the lower edge of one section is fitted to the tongue upon the upper edge of the next section below and thesaid plate J downwardly the action of the wedging device brings the door against the sills, as shown. It will be noticed, of course, that the cross-bars D may serve as the rungs of a ladder.

The interiorly beveled or inclined side edges H of the posts or sills B, in connection with the beveled or inclined side edges of the doorsections, serve to prevent the latter from being bound when the walls of the silo swell, as would be the case if the door-sections fitted between the posts or sills. Furthermore, the swelling of the walls of the silo has the effect of forcing the inclined or beveled faces G and H together with greater pressure to make a tight joint.

It is obvious that the door-sections when removed can be secured in place in the upper part of the doorway until they are to be used again.

I am aware that it has been proposed to construct silos with braces extending between the posts of the doorway and with hoops extending completely around the silo; but when the silo swells only the braces resist the tendency of the door-posts to move toward each other, it being noted that the continuous hoops cause this movement of the posts. In my invention the hoops extend only partially around the silo and are connected at their ends to the posts. When the silo swells, the tendency of the posts is therefore to move outwardly and separate, due to the outward pull exerted by the hoops O, which do not correspondingly lengthen. This is resisted by the cross-bars D, but there are no hoops that bind the silo that cause the posts to move inwardly. In other words, in the prior silo, to which I refer, when the staves swell there is a force pressing the posts together that is resisted by the cross-bar, while in my invention there is a force drawing the posts apart resisted by the cross-bars D. In said device the greatest force presses the posts together to contract the doorway, while in my device it is the reverse.

Having thus described myinvention, what I claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is

1. In a silo or tank having a doorway provided interiorly with inwardly-facing abutting faces, door-sections provided with outwardly-facing abutting faces adapted to contact with said abutting faces of the doorway, and wedging devices mounted upon the outer faces of the door-sections and upon the outside of the silo or tank to hold the door-section in position in said doorway with said abutting faces in contact, and drawing the door-section outwardly and to hold said abutting faces in contact under pressure the members of the wedging devices mounted upon the silo or tank being situated between the sides of the said doorway. I

2. In a silo or tank having a doorway, the upright guide-rods supported in front thereof, door-sections, and wedging devices mounted upon said door-sections and upon said guide-rods for holding the former in the desired position.

3. In a silo or tank having a doorway provided with upright guide-rods, sliding plates mounted upon said guide-rods and door-sec tions provided with stationary inclined members that are engaged by said sliding plates.

4. In asilo or tank having a doorway, crossbars extending across the same, upright guide-rods slidingl y mounted upon said crossbars, door-sections adapted to fit said doorway, and wedging devices mounted upon said doorsections and upon said guide-rods for holding the former in the desired position.

5. In a silo or tank having a continuous doorway, a plurality of cross-bars extending across the same, upright guide-rods slidingly mounted upon said cross-bars, door-sections fitting interiorly within said doorway and provided with wedges, and plates carried by said guide-rods and engaging said wedges.

6. In a silo or tank having an upright doorway provided interiorly at its sides with inwardly-facing abutting faces, said abutting faces converging toward the outside of the silo or tank, a plurality of door sections adapted to close said doorway, the sides of said door-sections being provided with outwardly-facing abutting faces converging toward the outside of the silo or tank, the upper and lower ends of said door-sections fitting the ends of adjacent door-sections, and means mounted upon the silo or tank and upon said door-sections for holding the latter in the doorway with the abutting faces in contact, said means being adapted to draw the door-sections outwardly and to hold said abutting faces in contact under pressure.

7. In a silo or tank having an upright doorway, sills or posts at the sides thereof, hoops connected at one end with one of said sills or posts and extending away from said doorway and around the silo or tank to the other sill or post, the other ends of said hoops being connected with said other sill or post, whereby said hoops extend around the silo or tank except across said doorway, and cross-bars extending across said doorway and connected at their ends with said sills or posts.

ENOS F. SCHLICHTER.

lVitnesses:

HARRY COBB KENNEDY, JOHN A. WIEDERSHEIM. 

